


Those that were lost

by Ianharrison



Series: The lost [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Star Wars Setting, Brutal Murder, Brutality, Force Bond (Star Wars), Jedi, M/M, Near Death Experiences, Sith Holocron, Threats of Rape/Non-Con, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-07
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-02-25 00:21:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22126921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ianharrison/pseuds/Ianharrison
Summary: The force is a powerful thing, it was a tool, a crutch, a way of life for some.For others it was the sole cause of thousands of years of pain and strife, and they learned to hate all that wielded it.Arum is a boy with no name, no home, and no family. Thanks to the Jedi. During the clone wars, Arums home planet of Rathron in the edges of known space was destroyed, leaving him the only survivor.Still just a boy, Arum swears revenge on the Jedi that took his family from him, and sets off into unknown space to find out if the rumors are true.There is something more powerful than the Jedi out there, he just needs to find it.
Relationships: Obi-Wan Kenobi/Anakin Skywalker, Original Characters - Relationship
Series: The lost [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1592713
Kudos: 4





	1. The falling

**Author's Note:**

> This story will follow a non cannon plot, focusing on my OC and his search for vengeance and eventually peace. Hope you enjoy, will update as frequently as a high school juniors schedule will permit.

Everything was... Gone. I couldn't believe my eyes, my own planet was burning, and children were screaming. The world had been peaceful and quiet for centuries until the Jedi had taken notice of huge amount of Kyber Crystals and force sensitive beings on the planet.

When they discovered our resources by chance, nothing had ever been the same. They would come every few years and collect dozens of our children for "training." 

They didn't need training, they needed a home. Still the Jedi took and took, until nearly all of our resources were gone. I was nearly taken myself, but was overlooked based solely on the fact that I had a much stronger affinity for the darkness then the light. 

I didn't know what to do, should I try to save them from certain death, or leave? And avenge them? Ultimately my choice is made for me, when a massive explosion sends torrents of fire into the sky, with the burnt limbs of innocent souls raining down. I needed to leave, find somewhere safe. 

No, I needed to find somewhere I could get vengeance, but where? I was a good warrior, my skill with the blade was unrivalled in my preferred form, but the Jedi could use the force, and despite apparently having and intensely strong connection to it, I could barely use the tool. 

I needed to find a teacher of the darkness, but where? The Sith had gone extinct a thousand years ago, so who could give me the power I needed to take my revenge? A thought hits me. There was a legend among my people, of a planet of powerful darksiders that lived past the edges of known space. But how could I find them? 

That was a question for another time, when I wasn't in immediate danger of burning to embers. I ran across the scorched earth, formerly teeming with life and prosperity, before the Jedi ruined everything with their ambition for power. I carefully bounded over the corpses of people I used to call friends, family. What could use call them now? 

Massacred. 

I finally made it to my ship, which was thankfully unharmed by the collapsing planet around me. I quickly boarded and took off. It took only a few moments for my ship, a sleek, black, fighter to leave the atmosphere. I was one of the few of my people allowed to leave the planet of Rathron, so my ship was the only one that I knew of that had a hyperspace engine. 

I quickly set coordinates for the space station located only a few minutes hyperspace travel, and jumped into the blue. 

As expected, I made it to the station in just a few moments, the small station coming into view as I was left floating in space towards it. The station itself was unassuming. It had no military capabilities, the only thing that made it special was the fact that it was the last station in the known galaxy, the perfect place to find out where I needed to go. I would find these darksiders, and make them teach me the ways of the force. 

The legends said that these darksiders rivaled even the most powerful of the old Sith empires. The masters even matching the pure power of the likes of Vitiate, Naga Sadau and Freedan Nad. If that was true, they would have the power to end the Jedi once and for all. 

Just thinking of the Jedi brought my blood to a boil. Those bastards, taking what they wanted with no regards for those they hurt. They claimed to be peace keepers, protectors, and guardians. I couldn't be the only one in the galaxy that knew the truth, that they were warlords, monsters and thieves. I could feel the hate for them coursing through my veins, and I could feel power in the hate. It made me strong, I feel like I could takedown a legion of them alone. 

That wasn't true, I thought to myself, the Jedi were monsters, but Damn effective ones. I probably could best an average knight, but the masters would end me swiftly, like they did my world. 

I entered the empty station, my charred clothes stinking with the blood of my family. I immediately went to the bridge of the station, and entered the access codes needed to access the hidden maps of the unknown regions. Many before me had searched for the tribe of the darksiders, and while none had succeeded, I would be the first. I wouldn't rest until I had burnt the Jedi Temple to ash, and was able to breath in the ashes of their bones the same way I did the ashes of my people. 

I poured over the maps, narrowing down the only planets capable of being habitable to life. There were over two dozen planets to search, many several months travel even in hyperspace. I was searching too simply, I'm sure many before me had thought of this, if the greatest map makers had failed to find them this way, I was confident their skill surpassed mine. I needed to try something else. 

Maybe these darksiders didn't want to be found, maybe they hid away for a reason. I knew some of how the force supposedly operated, and the dichotomy between the light and dark. I narrowed down my search to only those planets that either had a strong connection to the force, or had a force vortex located near by. Still over a dozen planets. Think, if I was a colony of darksiders that didn't want to be found, where would I hide? 

The answer was simple, but brilliant. That much force energy would throw off a massive signal, more than any single planet could on its own. How would I mask that? I narrowed down my search to planets that had a connection to the force, but no affiliation, and those that had a huge connection to the light side. Either one of the types would suffice in hiding a huge force signal. 

Two planets remained. Both at the very edge of the distance of the maps range. Both would take at least a year travel to reach at hyperspeed. I downloaded the maps and coordinates onto a drive, and started preparing for a long journey. Luckily, the station had non perishable rations that so I'd suffice, and many of them. Much more than I could need in my journey, still, I took all of them and had the worker droids put them in a large cruiser vessel, slower than my ship but had overall much better function and more space. 

I went back to my ship, took my duel blade from their compartment, and fueled up the rest of the ship, making sure to take many spare drives and a huge amounts of fuel from the station. The small outpost would be essentially crippled by my theft, but it was no matter. The Jedi needed to die. 

And now I had a plan.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arum trains to try to access the dark side, but finds trouble. He feels an immense hatred towards the Jedi, but doesn't have the ability to let go of his morality. 
> 
> As he gets closer and closer to the home of the darksiders, Arum feels an immense weight lift off of his shoulders. He is approaching his home.
> 
> His true home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's up, to the... 3 people who have read this story so far. I had an entire chapter two drafted but it was done on a computer and now I'm on a tablet, so I can't access it, maybe it didn't save.. 
> 
> Anyway, here is chapter two

I was getting frustrated. The dark side was not responding to my calls. I could feel it dancing at the edges of my consciousness, weaving in and out of my mental state, but it would not answer my call. 

I could feel the power at the edges of my fingertips, the power to end the Jedi once and for all. I remembered my promise to them.

You will suffer as I have, I promise. 

Remembering the Jedi brought about memories of Rathron, and my childhood. The planet was rather small, with only one city and only around thirty thousand people. All of them gone. I could remember the soft lights of our three Suns, feel the healthy dirt beneath my bare feet. That memory was slowly fading, replaced with memories of fire and ash and the stink of charred flesh. 

I stood from my meditative state, anxious and in need of exercise. I grabbed my dual blades from beside me, considering training with them. No, I had already trained twice today, and I didn't need to burn myself out. I decided instead to work on my physical strength and endurance. 

For whatever fucking reason, the previous owners of this cargo ship had a large exercise room built into the back of the large ship. It had many free weights and other fun toys to test myself with. I was already a very strong young man, being the best duelist in the history of my people had ensured that, but I needed to get stronger. 

I made my way through my stretches, making sure to hit every one of muscles thoroughly, before I began my workout. I grabbed a large leather harness and slipped into over my Gray and black tunic. The harness was cumbersome and had many straps and hooks to attach weight to it. 

I loaded the harness with 60 kilograms of plated weights and made my way over to a bar that was around ten feet off the ground, and wrapped my fingers around it, pulling myself up over and over and over again. I lost count at a hundred and decided to change my training. I gathered up as many ten kilograms weights as I could find and placed them in easy access to me. 

I then wrapped the fingers of my right hand around the bar and let myself hang. Every five minutes i added a ten kilogram weight to the harness with my left hand. After around twenty five minutes I finally lost my grip. I reset the harness back to sixty from its previous one hundred ten kilogram weight and repeated the process. 

After I finished that exercise I made my way through the room doing various full body exercises with the intention of numbing my frustration with the force. I hated that I could not access it's power. I needed it more than whoever had it. 

I continued to wage war with the force inside me. A dark skinned Master Jedi had said I had a strong affinity for the dark side was he wrong? He couldn't be. I didn't come all this way to be told I was too weak to learn the ways of the force. 

I resolved myself that even if I didn't have the powers I thought I did, I would hunt down the Jedi masters who took my world away anyway. I had to. For my best friend Ryuu, who loved wild flowers. For my little brother Malcolm, who liked to spar with me. 

For my lover, August. He was the kindest man I had ever known, the most gentle, the softest. He loved to swim in the river just outside our city when we had a day off. The Jedi took them all from me, and I would take everything from them. 

I grunted and left the workout room, deciding to check my course for the first time in a while. I had been on this Damn ship for 11 months. 11 months I hadn't cut my hair, so it hung down to my shoulders, 11 months I hadn't shaved well, so I had a pretty full beard going. 11 months to train in accessing the dark side but I had gotten NOWHERE. 

I screamed in frustration, and a ricochet of power flooded off of me. It didn't the walls of the hallway I was in, bending the durasteel like it was wet paper.   
What the fuck? Where had that come from? Was this the force? I felt a power surging through me, like I had never felt before. 

This was the darkness, I felt it. I knew it to be true in my bones. I let the inner darkness feed off of my hate, and I felt my power grow even more. This would be fun, but I had to wonder, why had this worked now, when it didn't for so long? It seemed ironic too me, too purposeful. Like I was a character in an awfully written story, and the author used this irony as a plot device to advance the story. 

I laughed, and for a moment set the force aside to check the navigation. 

I was one week outbound from my first destination.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arum is searching for the lost colony of the darksiders, training and working to make sure he won't be immediately killed by these powerful beings. 
> 
> As his hate begins to consume him on his year long journey, Arum starts to unlock more powers through the dark side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, this is a non cannon story and won't follow the timeline of the clonewars.
> 
> Also this was a draft for a chapter 2 I'm repurposing into a chapter 3 so bear with the meditation and training bits, it gets better.

Meditation was more difficult than I thought. I had been taught how, by the warriors of my people. Unfortunately for me, my people didn't place a lot of stock in the force, hence why there was so much conflict when the Jedi took our children. My own best friend was taken. I wondered if he was alive, if he had found peace in his journey. Trying to meditate with the force, it went against everything I had ever been taught. 

I was always taught that to meditate was to close yourself off to your emotions, but meditation with the force was the opposite. Despite my peoples hate of the force, we were no fools. We knew, at least a little, about how the force was supposed to work. I let out a groan of frustration, this was never going to fucking work, and if I didn't have a deeper connection to the dark side, I knew I would be killed. Power without training is entirely useless. 

I stood from my sitting position, and grabbed my blades from beside me. I needed to move around, somehow. Despite the size of the ship, it wasn't really large enough to train well in, especially in my form of combat. I owned two double edges, straight swords. The blades were around three and a half feet long, with small cross guards and a strange pommel. The pommels were designed to clasp together, turning the blades into a one handle, two bladed weapon. It was exceptionally hard to use these weapons effectively, especially in my preferred form. 

I liked to switch between wielding the blades with one in each hand to essentially using it as a sharp staff. I started to move through my forms, picking up speed and intensity, until I was moving so fast that keeping my body in one place was difficult. There was only one place on this ship that had enough room to fully practice my forms, and unfortunately the hanger was full of food. 

My quarters would have to suffice. After training for several hours, I decided to check my course. I had been on this ship for nearly a year, so I was very close. Being on this damned ship was maddening, there was so little too do. I had spent so much time training and meditating that I was in the best shape of my life. It had helped that the former owner of this ship had many free weights strewn about. I had gained nearly thirty pounds of muscle, so I now truly looked like a man, as opposed to the boy I used to be. 

I had left my home world of Rathron when I was seventeen, and while I had been fit enough, I was on another level entirely now. I had also grown a fledgling beard, my dark blonde hair now coating my face evenly, and my hair now flowed down to my shoulders.

When I met these darksiders, I would have to have a better plan than, "hey, train me to kill the Jed." There was a good chance I would be shot down from orbit, or killed once I land. There was also a good chance that these darksiders didn't share the same hatred for the Jedi that the Sith do. I had to remind myself that being a Sith, and using the dark side are different.

The training had left me parched and hungry, so I decided to get some food before I went to sleep. I walked down the silent corridors to the main hangar, and chose a random box of rations. Some kind of dried meat and carb meal. Luckily for me, these required no preparation at all to make so I could just open and enjoy. 

Obviously, travel rations aren't as good as fresh food, but for what they are, the previous owner of this ship had gotten some high quality goods. I finished this ration, ate two more and drank a litre of water. Satisfied that my body had fuel, I walked back through the corridors to my chambers. My bed was just large enough to fit my large form, both in height and now weight, and there was a small computer that linked up the main computer so any updates on my course would reach me, even if I was asleep. 

I stripped out of my outfit, all the way down to my base layer and collapsed onto my bed, sleep taking me near instantly. I was thankful that nightmares were rare for me, and that my brain had essentially decided to block out all memories of Rathron. I don't know what I would do if that didn't happen. I didn't dream at all, instead finding myself in a deep slumber, so deep, I was barely awoken by my alarm . 

The thing blared at me, but it wasn't my normal alarm, or my alarm for updates on my course. This was the signal of an incoming transmission. I immediately jumped out of bed and lunged for the computer in my room, and slapping the com device, accepted the transmission. 

A large, vaguely humanoid man with red skin and very harsh features appeared before me. He stared deeply at me for a few moments, clearly comparing my bare chest to his magnificent robe, before he spoke. 

"You are trespassing in Ghasnosian space. You are hereby ordered to leave or be destroyed." The man growled, his annoyance very clear. 

"Is this the planet of the darksiders?" I asked back calmly, much to the man's chagrin. 

"It doesn't matter, leave or be destroyed!" He roared at me. I tilted my head. 

"No." 

"No?!" The man screamed back, astonished. 

"You heard me. I am on a mission, and I will see it through. I can sense the dark side getting closer. I am nearing my destination and you will not stop me. Your blasters won't, and your Darksiders won't." I snarled back, and the red skinned man's eyebrow popped up. 

"So another wannabe Jedi found us, eh?" The man inquired to himself. "No matter, he will die soon." At the the mention of the Jedi, my blood boiled. 

"Do not call me a Jedi. They took everything from me! You will not disrespect me in such a way. Besides, why would a Jedi come here? They have a war to fight already." I snapped at the man, and he even flinched.

"If you are not a Jedi.... why are you here?" The man asked, obviously confused. 

"The Sith in the known galaxy are extinct, and I need a teacher. So I can kill Jedi." I said slowly, trying not to get to impatient. 

"And this Jedi war?" The man asked. 

"Let me on your planet and ill tell you all about it." I said back.

"Very well. It seems something Interesting has happened after all." 

So it begins...m


	4. The Darksiders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arum meets the Darkside Lord, Onesius Maran. After much conflict, he is to be trained in the darkside, especially the ways of Sith Alchemy.

After the mysterious man gave me permission to land, a large breath forced its way out of my chest. I could feel the mans power, it dwarfed my own significantly. If he had truly wanted to kill me, he would have, and done it easily. I wondered what I was truly getting myself into. Was this the best way to get revenge? Was this even worth it? The memories of Rathron flashed across my vision, and I could remember all the innocents that had been lost to the Jedi. There was no other way, either I would succeed, or I would die. Either way, the Jedi would no longer torment me. 

I waited a precious few moments as the large ship descended onto the planet, before I remembered that I was essentially bare skinned. I had to make a better impression on the other dark siders if I wanted to be trained. I quickly changed into a deep black tunic with no sleeves, and a equally dark, loose pants that went to just above my ankles. I decided to keep my blades under my robe, with the hilts facing down in case I needed to draw them quickly. After securing my blades to my black, I slipped on a black robe, that left a large chunk of my chest exposed under it. 

I then stood to the side of my quarters, thinking of what I could say to these people. If I knew anything, I knew that pity would get me nowhere. These were not a soft people, the man who had commed me was proof of that. I needed to show them strength, show them I was not a boy with a grudge, but a man with a mission, one that would not be hindered by them. 

The ship landed, and I let the doors open. Composing myself one last time, I made way to the open hole in the ship, and descended out of it's relative safety. I made my way out of the ship, using my hand to shield myself from the blaring sun. When my eyes finally adjusted to the light, I was struck by an amazing sight. The entire planet was filled with trees and plants of various types. It was strikingly similar to my own home planet, Rathron. I felt a swell of emotion just standing here, which I quickly turned to rage. This entire situation felt like a slap to the face. I was broken out of my thoughts by an hand on my arm. The grip was firm, but friendly. I turned to face a young man that seemed to be slightly younger than I am, with a shaved head and smooth, but intense features. 

"Who are you?" I asked the man, loudly, much to the amusement of the several dozen men surrounding me. I noticed that all the men were dressed the same, in gray pants and long sleeved shirt. They had the hilts of lightsabers on their hips, and I had to assume they knew how to use them. 

"I am Meran. I am to guide you to the testing." He said tersely, barely glancing my way. I felt a shiver down my spine. This would not be good. 

"What is the testing?" I ask him, but he doesn't answer. I was maybe half a foot taller than the younger man, but he had a fluid form of motion that spoke of skill. I let him lead me through what seemed to be a large city, with a foreign style of architecture. The city itself was pretty, with many colors swirling in unison and changing every few seconds. I let my thoughts guide me to the testing, what would this test be? 

A few moments later, I reach the steps of a large temple. It was a large thing, similar in size and style to the Jedi temple, except for the color. It was pure gray, perhaps the only gray building in the entire city, at least as far as I knew. The man turned and looked up at me. 

"This is where I leave you. Ascend the steps and enter the Temple. There you will meet the Council. They will test you in various ways. You fail, you die." He said softly, before turning away. I nod at him once before turning to head up the steps.

"Wait, what is your name?" Meran called to me. 

"Arum." I reply, not looking back at him. 

"I hope you succeed, Arum. It is not often we get outsiders here." He says, his voice lowering. 

I don't answer, instead I continue to climb the steps, climbing the hundreds of steps at a steady slow pace. Let this council wait. After a while, I finally reach the doors to the temple.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arum takes the test, a hellish thing that will bring him closer to his goals.... so he thinks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Typed on my phone on a whim don’t judge me

I walked through the doors of the temple, nervous but ready for what was going to happen. This test, whatever it was, couldn’t stop me. I needed them to accept me, and from what Meran had said, it seemed that this was the way to get them to do so. 

Walking through the doors, I entered a large room with almost nothing in it, only many many pillars. The area was very dimly lit, and I could see doors on the other end. I assume that’s where they want me to go. I steeled my nerves, and forced my legs to move. 

About halfway there, something starts to feel very wrong. I stopped moving, and immediately drew my blades from my back, holding them in a duel wield fashion, I study my surroundings. Someone was here. I had assumed that I would start the test in some official way, but I was wrong, it had already begun. 

Presumably from the ceiling, a younger woman fell, and landed silently on her feet in front of me. She wore some very tight training clothing, wielding a lightsaber on her hip. She quickly used the force to draw it to her hand and ignited it, the golden blade illuminating the room. 

She rushed me, moving more quickly than any man had any right to, so I assumed she had used the force to augment her speed. She swung her blade at me, and I deftly dodged to the side. I knew that If her blade met mine, it would cut through it like butter. 

I spun to my left, jabbing with the tip of my blade to force distance. She backed up slightly, then pressed her clear advantage even harder. She wanted to get close to me, so I didn’t have the ability to dodge. I jumped into the air, flipping backwards away, she seemed surprised. I hadn’t even used the force to do so, but she seemed to think I did. So she was under the impression that I wasn’t able to use the force, she was right, of course, but she didn’t need to know that. 

I ran forward and slid, my loose clothes sliding along the marble floor. In a moment I was under her legs, and I slashed at her calf. She jumped out of the way before I could get more than a small cut. Damn this would difficult. I quickly jumped to my feet just in time to dodge several strikes. I needed to end this quickly. This girl, while she was good, would have already been eliminated if her weapon didn’t completely counter mine. I leaped forward, directly into her guard. I slammed the pommel of my blade onto her wrist, dislodging her lightsaber. It fell, and while it was falling I grabbed it in two fingers, and slammed my fist into her stomach. 

She bent like wet paper, and, taking advantage of her momentary plight, and slammed a kick into her head that knocked her out completely. Panting hard, I sheathed my blades and kept her lightsaber. It was Ill fit for my large hands, but it would have to do. I needed to be able to clash blades with my next opponent. 

I kicked her once more, making sure she was out then continued on through the room. I was careful to make sure that she was the only attacker. She was. Either she was the warmup, or these darksiders had underestimated me. I suspect the former. 

I entered a random door, and am almost impaled by a spike that shot through the doorway. I was just barely able to dodge, but not fully. There was a now gash that went across my stomach, it wasn’t deep, but it did hurt. 

I ran across to another door, and another spike came flying towards me, and this time I was able to block it with my new lightsaber.

Fuck. Another wrong entrance. There was only a couple more doors left. I need to think, I can’t spend all my time on one stupid task, I need to be better than this. If I was making a test that would test if I was worthy to be a darksider. 

Fuck I’m so stupid. There is no way I can pass this test without somehow harnessing the force. Where would I put an exit that would allow me to leave the room, but only if I was able to use the force? 

The ceiling! I looked up and scanned the area, hoping against hope that the exit was something other than the giant hole in the ceiling. There was nothing else there, that was the way out of here. 

God damn it. I’m sure I could climb my way out of here, but that wasn’t the point. I needed to show them I have home potential. I jumped as high as I could, trying to draw on the force. I went exactly as high as I did before. I tried again, same result. I tried again and again and again, to no avail. 

“God fucking damn it!” I screamed as I leaped again, this time soaring high into the air. I quickly twisted and tried to grad a ledge, but in my surprise I missed and fell about twenty feet down. 

I was just barely able to land in a way that didn’t break my legs. Fuck, I needed to try again. I needed to call the force again. Both times I’ve actually felt the force in my body, I’ve been furious, so clearly the dark side responded to that. 

I let myself think of my home, and the Jedi, and what they had done to my people, to me. The familiar, potent rage came back, along with hate. I hated them, for taking my family from me, taking my brother from me. 

I screamed and jumped again this time aiming, and I hit the lip of the hole and bounced off of it. I kept up the rhythm. In a few seconds I had reached the top and over, landing in yet another room. This time, instead of assailants, there was a ring of Seven Thrones, each with either a man, or one of the Red skinned aliens I had seen before. They all stared into me, eyes yellow and full of hatred and disdain. 

One of them spoke up, an older man towards the center. 

“I’ve seen children finish the first stage faster. What do you think you are doing here, boy?” He asked me, mocking. 

“I’m here to pass this stupid fucking test, that requires me to use force powers I never learned, to kill some Jedi. Is that enough, your majesty?” I ask him, my voice dripping with sarcasm. 

The mans eyes scowl, and in a moment, I can feel myself being lifted into the air, my throat constricting. He was choking me with his mind. 

“I am a Lord of the Sith, you insolent child. I could kill you where you stand, and, I think I will.” He grinned evilly, and choked me even harder, while his cohorts looked on passively. 

My throat is burning, and I couldn’t catch a breath, and I didn’t try to speak. He was going to kill me, oh god he was going to kill me. I felt a sharp pang of fear shock through me. I couldn’t die here. I had come so far. 

No! I would not die here, I wouldn’t let it happen. The fear turned to rage, and I reached out myself, and took hold of the man. I lifted him up, and slammed him Into the ground hard enough to crack the marble. If he wasn’t dead, I would be surprised. 

His grip on my throat suddenly disappeared, and I sucked in a huge breath. I met the eyes of the other men in the thrones. I recognized one of them as the man who had commed me. 

“I told you. I am here to be trained. And you will not stop me.” I snarled at him, and he actually flinched. 

“I wouldn’t dream of it, young man. It seems you have some promise. You haven’t completed the full test, but I’ve seen enough. I will take you as my apprentice.” Another man said, and my eyes snapped to him. He was a large, dark skinned man, with a thick beard and shaved head. 

“What is your name, young man?” He asked me. 

“Arum.” I said, loudly, boldly. 

“I am Onesius. Come, Arum. You have much to learn.” 

He turned on a heal, and I followed him out of the room.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arum begins his training

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why?

Onesius strode confidently out of the throne room, and I had no choice but to follow. He took a complex series of turns, almost as if he was trying to confuse me. After a while of just following him silently, he decided to talk to me. 

“Arum, why have you come here? Truly?” He asked, as if he hadn’t heard me explain it to the council. 

“I am here to be trained in the dark side.” I said simply. “Why else does one come to a place like this?” I asked in return. 

“Many come for enlightenment in the force. We call ourselves the Sith, but that is not entirely true. The Sith were burdened by other infighting and greed, so much so that Darth Bane chose to establish the rule of two.” He said, turning to me, before Continuing, “We have minimized that issue as much as can be done. We train in the dark side so we can have power, of course, but also because it gives us freedom.” He said again, and fell silent. 

I thought for a moment, before answering. 

“I honestly couldn’t care less about freedom, or any of the philosophical reasons I should train. I’m here to become powerful, so I can take revenge on those who wronged me.” I said, softly. I wasn’t timid, I knew what I was here to do, but I did feel slightly embarrassed at my reason for training.

“I assume that it is the Jedi who wronged you. Is this correct?” Onesius asked me softly. 

“Yes.” I tersely replied, my mind filling with rage at even the mention of the Jedi. 

“What did they do to you?” 

“They took all of my peoples children for training, and stripped our planet for its resources" It took nearly all my strength not to scream at the injustice of it all. 

“That seems out of character for the Jedi.” Onesius remarked, and I couldn’t help but agree. 

“Yes, but the Jedi have control over their own image. The public view of them is what they want it to be.” I said back, playing the devils advocate. 

“That is also true. You spoke of a war that the Jedi are a part of, is this true?” He asked me, and I was surprised he even knew, since he wasn’t the one I spoke to

"Yes. The Jedi have militarized alongside a clone army fighting for the republic against the separatists. I am not sure who is winning, my home planet was a neutral planet." I responded, I had more information about the war, but not much.

"You said your planet WAS neutral party, did they wind up picking a side?" Onesius inquired, emphasizing the word was. 

"No, Rathron was destroyed by the republic and the Jedi. I saw their warships in the sky before our planet was destroyed." I said softly, barely able to force the words out. 

"Ah, so that's why you want revenge." Onesius said with finality, and acceptance. 

A few moments of silence passed and we left the temple, but we still walked. I simply followed my master to wherever he was going. After a while of walking through the colorful city, we reached a large building and proceeded up the stairs. I assumed this place was where either I, Onesius, or both would be living.

We took an elevator to the top floor, and stepped off to see not several rooms, but one large one, with several beds. Onesius turned to me, gesturing to the room. 

“Our sect of the Sith Order does not follow the rule of two, and as a grand master I have half a dozen apprentices counting you. They are considered master rank. Normally you would be paired with an adept or even a master, but you killed a grand master with your rage alone. That warrants some... special considerations.” He said, and I cringed slightly. 

“Will I be punished for his death?” I asked Onesius, and he laughed. 

“No. While infighting is frowned upon, you were clearly defending yourself and thus, are justified in your actions.” Onesius explained, and I nodded in understanding. 

Onesius then left without fan fair, and I was left to figure out what to do with myself. After a moment of consideration, I decide to meditate.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arum has an intense conversation with Meran, and learns that power is not enough to earn respect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait in updating, i've been super busy with school, but now the corona virus has messed all that up so I have more time on my hands than I would like to.

I strode about the room, trying to familiarize myself with it. This would be where all of Onesius's apprentices would stay, including me. I couldn't help but be intimidated by the idea of training alongside masters when I knew nothing about the force. I knew from personal experience that being gifted would not earn their respect. When I started training with the blade, I was a natural, quickly showing I was as good or better than an average warrior at the very start. Instead of getting respect and admiration for that, it only bred contempt among those that had trained years to be that good. 

If I wanted the respect of these people, I would need to show them that I wasn't just a vessel of power, but a man with a mission. A man with resolve. As I was making my way to what I assumed was going to be my bed, I heard footsteps behind me. Multiple sets. I kept silent about my knowledge of their existence, as it seemed they were trying to be covert. When one of them was only about three paces behind me, I spun and kicked out, landing a huge kick that sent one of the people behind me into the others. 

I turned fully, making eye contact with each of the people currently in the room. I recognized one of them as Meran, the man who had greeted me earlier. He crooked his eyebrow up at me, as if he was asking me what the fuck I thought I was doing. 

"You must have passed your test, and impressed the masters, if Onesius chose you to be his last apprentice." Meran says, his voice even, not a hint of emotion present. 

"Yeah, after I fought the chick at the beginning and jumped my way up to the throne room, one of the Grand Masters tried to kill me." I said, still slightly shaken by that whole set of events. Merans eyes shot open at that, and I could see his shock mirrored in his friends. 

"A grand master tried to kill you, what stopped him?" One of the other people in the room commented. He was shorter man with shaggy black hair, and he was rubbing at his chest, so I assumed that was who I kicked. 

"I did." I said coldly. I don't know if they knew that I had killed one of the grand masters, or how they would feel about it if they did. 

"What happened?" Meran asked me, his voice now showing a level of concern, for whom? I don't know. 

"One of the red skinned masters tried to force choke me. I lived through it, he didn't." I said softly. Death was a necessary part of life, but death is never to be celebrated, even the death of an enemy. Even the death of a Jedi.

Meran looked thoughtful at this, even surprised. I could see his hand stroke his clean shaven face. We were truly opposites, him and I. He was lean, long and gave off an aura of calm power, while I was just a large brute who didn't shave for a year. I'm sure my beard was down nearly down to my chest, but I hadn't seen my face in a long time. I stroked my chin in a mirroring dance of his movements, an act that didn't go unnoticed. 

"Onesius told me that you didn't have to cut your hair like the rest of us, but for the sake of everyone on this planet please shave your face." He said, his voice showing no hints of laughter despite the small smile on his face. 

"Ah, yeah, I planned on doing that anyway. I like beards, but this one is just a little much." I said back, trying to put a joking tone to my voice, but most likely failing. I hadn't really let myself notice before, but Meran was an incredibly handsome young man, his eyes held a deep wisdom that seemed to defy his age. 

"How old are you, Meran?" I ask him suddenly, I just want to be sure.

"I am nineteen years old." He replies back, suddenly cold. I nod my understanding, but on the inside i'm surprised. Nineteen? He looks seventeen at the oldest. 

"Well, if this little chat is over, I have to set my space up and find a place to shave." I say cautiously. I knew that six people wouldn't try to sneak up on me if they just wanted to talk. I shift my gaze away from Meran to the others in the room, sizing them up. If they came here to jump me into the gang, so to speak, I wouldn't make it easy for them. I try to exude a fearless, but dangerous demeanor, one that says "do not fuck with me" 

One of the men laughs, a harsh, grating sound. He grins at me, his teeth white and glistening. He was closer to my height and build, with a shaved head a trimmed beard. His eyes though... they were red. 

"Your mind is as open as a childs, Arum. You may have raw power, but you are not trained, and I think I can speak for everyone here when I say,' he pauses and steps so close to me I can smell his breath, "that we don't want you to be." He almost snarls the words out. My mind immediately shuts itself, and I can feel my face twist into a glare. 

"I couldn't care less what you want. I have a mission." I snarl back, matching his intensity. 

Faster than I can blink his hand snaps out and he shoves me hard, and I almost fall over the bed I had been standing in front of. 

"I don't think you understand. This isn't a greeting party." He says to me coldly, shoving me again. 

"Here is what you are going to do. You are going to go to training tomorrow, and afterwards, you will go to Onesius, and tell him you don't need his training, then you will leave this planet and never come back. We don't need outsiders like you to taint our order." The man says, his voice terse with anger. 

Without breaking eye contact, my hand shoots out and I jab him in the throat. He stumbles back, clutching at his neck, while he is still disoriented, I slam a knee into his stomach, then grab him by his gray tunic and throw him over the bed into the wall. I jump over the useless furniture and place a foot on his throat. 

"I don't think YOU understand. I don't care about your petty politics. You were raised on this planet. You have lost nothing compared to what I have lost. Have you ever felt the ashes of your family rain from the sky?" I'm shouting now, "Have you ever woken up to see only fire and blood? Have you ever had to leave everything you have ever known behind?" I slam my fist into his face. 

"I watched, for YEARS, as the Jedi took the children of my planet. I watched them plunder my world for its goods, and when it was over, I watched them raze the planet to ashes." I slam another fist into his stomach, why weren't his friends helping him? 

"I had to leave behind the ashes of my family, my friends, and my partner, the kindest man I have ever known, just to come here, and you think I will leave now just so you don't feel slighted?" I stomp on his chest, eliciting a soft groan from the man. I bend down, and whisper into his ear, "I killed a grand master to get here, don't think I won't kill you." Before stepping off of him and turning away. 

The five others were standing where I had left them, their expressions a mixture of shock and contempt. Meran, though, looked proud. The man nodded, and the other four beside him turned on a heel and walked out of the room, leaving only me, Meran, and the unconscious asshole on the other end of the bed in the room. 

"Arum, will you walk with me?" Meran asks, but I can tell from his tone that I have no choice. I nod, not responding. My blood was still boiling from the fight I had just had. Who does this guy think he is? 

Meran nods back, and turns to leave the room, and I follow him. He leads me out of the building I had been in and onto the streets, which were empty, despite the sun still being high in the sky. I still wasn't used to there not being three stars in the sky. For a long while, Meran says nothing, just leading me through the streets at a brisk pace. After a while, Meran turns to me, his eyes sad. 

"I'm sorry for your loss. None of us were aware of why you had come here, we only thought that you were just another outsider trying to learn the secrets of the Sith." Meran says softly, meeting my eyes, but still not looking like he was fully present. 

"It doesn't matter what anyone thinks, or knows. I am here with a purpose. If it makes you feel any better, I don't want to be full Sith, I just want to have enough knowledge of the darkside to kill the Jedi." I respond back, turning my head away from him. Meran nods slowly. Why was everything he did so mechanical?

"I will offer you some advice. Your strength will only be a hindrance here. If you want to be accepted, you will have to prove your worth as a man." Meran almost whispers the words, as if it was some sort of grand secret only we knew. 

"I will try, but in the end, I will not stay here. I have no idea how long I will be trained for, but once it is over you will likely never see me again." I say, not really knowing why I decided to tell him that. 

"I had assumed so. That is another thing I wanted to speak to you about. Onesius is your master, as he is mine, but he will not be in direct control of your training until you have mastered the basics, until you can show you have grasp on the force that doesn't require intense anger, I will be your master." He says back to me, and my jaw tilts open in shock. 

"Why you?" Is all I can think of as a response. 

"Because Onesius is my father, and he believes that given our emotional states are opposite, I would be the best one to teach you." Meran says, as if that made any fucking sense whatsoever. 

"If you will be teaching me, how will you train?" I ask, again, not sure why I am concerned as to what he does with his life. 

"I completed my training last year, what stops me from being battle master is that I have yet to take an apprentice. If I train you, and you pass the Trials, you will be granted the rank of Warrior Elite, and I will be Battle Master." 

I nod my understanding, despite understanding very little. 

"Then I guess we both have an interest in this working out." I say, almost sarcastically, but not quite. 

"Indeed we do." Is all Meran says back. 

This should be fun.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arum's training under Meran begins, revealing some interesting facts about both of them

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two updates?? in a week?? couldn't be me.

I am absolutely certain Meran was trying to kill me. For such a lean man, he was incredibly strong, and dare I say it, a match for me in combat. I quickly ducked under a strike from his light saber, and spun, while remaining low to the ground, trying to get an angle on his legs. Using the force, Meran leaped into the air and struck down with his saber, and I was just barely fast enough to evade the strike. If that blow had hit me, I would be about half a foot shorter. 

"Come on Arum, you have to use the force. You are an incredibly talented fighter, but you will never beat me with just your body." Meran called, slashing at me in a complex sequence. I parried or blocked all of them, and slammed an open palm into his chest, sending him back a couple steps. If I had just knocked the wind out of him, you couldn't tell, because he immediately pushed forward again. This time his strikes so fast that I could barely keep up. I leaped back, still not using the force. 

"I told you, it is hard to break the discipline taught to me. My people were almost entirely closed off to the force, we see it as a crutch for real martial prowess." I said, my voice heavy with exhaustion. We had been training for nearly nine hours, and over the last month I had been here, the schedule had rarely wavered. I had gotten the basics of how to use a lightsaber very quickly, and in just a straight up fight, I was still the best combatant on the planet. 

"Your people shunned the force, and look where that landed them." Meran snarled at me, his voice full of disgust. My mind went red at the words. How dare he say something like that? 

Moving faster than I thought possible, I struck at him over and over in a deadly sequence I had learned from my people, getting inside his guard in seconds. I slammed my pommel into the side of his face, my strength sending him sprawling to the ground. He hit the floor of our training room hard, nearly bouncing back up. He tried to stand again, but I planted a kick to his rib cage, sending him flying into the wall. 

A burst of speed brought me to him again, and I raised my yellow lightsaber, ready to end him, before my mind cleared. Fuck, I lost control again. I had used the force, but it was still purely instinctual, I couldn't have done that by choice. I deactivated my lightsaber and clipped it to the belt I had on my tunic. I reached down, offering Meran a hand up. He looked up at me, his eyes tired. He wasn't angry, just disappointed, I assume. 

After helping him up, he looked at me, clutching his side. I cringed slightly, knowing I had broken his ribs. 

"See? You can use the force, you just need a little push." He said, smug. All the sympathy I had in my mind vanished. 

"I don't usually question ones training methods, but if you ever use the genocide of my people against me again, I will finish what I started here." I snarl at him, looking away from his crystal green eyes. 

Meran seems to sober a bit at that. He bows lightly to me, and says, "I'm sorry, Arum, I didn't want to seem insensitive to what happened to you, but from all that you've shown me, you become most efficient in using the force when you are angry, and that was the only thing I could to say that would push you over the edge." He looks remorseful at his actions, but I was still irritated with him. 

"Look, Meran, I would like to think of you as my only friend on this planet, so please, out of respect for me, try to find other ways to piss me off." I say to him, forgiving and scolding him in the same breath. 

"Of course, I will have to alter my training plan. To be honest, I'm impressed. You are a match for ever non master level warrior on the planet even without the force. If you can harness your power, you will have trouble finding a worthy opponent." Meran says, and I can tell he is trying to placate me by stroking my ego. I would have none of that. 

"I don't care about any of that. I want to be more than a match for any Jedi, the warriors on this planet matter little to me." I say, huffing the words out. Merans eyes flash red for a moment, and i'm lifted into the air. 

"If I am not to insult your people, you are to show me the same respect. We all understand that we are a means to an end for you, but try not to rub it in our faces." Meran drops me, and strides away. Fuck, he was pissed off now. 

I stood there for a few moments, feeling stupid. Was what he said true? Are these people just a means to an end for me? These people were a culture as diverse and beautiful as my own, who was I to just use them for my own gain? 

Fuck, I felt like an awful person. Meran was one of the few people on this planet that were genuinely kind to me, and I just keep pushing him away. What am I doing? I am acting like a Jedi, just taking and taking from a people who have done me no wrong. 

I run out of the training room, trying to find Meran. I need to apologize to him. I knew, deep down, that my goals in being here were selfish, but I never considered the effect my actions could have on someone else. 

I run to the building we were both living in, hoping to find him here. The training session had been intense even before harsh words were exchanged, so my tunic was ripped and soaked in sweat, causing the fabric to stick to my chest. I climbed the staircase to the floor that held our living quarters. I peeked into the room, the door open. Meran was sitting on his bed, which was on the other end of the room from mine. 

I strode towards him, and he lifted his chin to look at me. 

"I don't want to speak to you, outsider." Meran snapped at me, stopping me in my tracks. He had never called me that before, and coming from him, It felt like a curse. 

"Then let me speak," I said, bowing low, still half a dozen feet from him, "I am truly sorry for the words I have said to you, they were hurtful and insensitive. Your people have given me the only place in the galaxy I can be safe and learn about myself and my role in the force." My eyes tear up a bit, and I lift my head. He was staring at me, bored and still very angry, but when he saw the tears in my eyes, his own softened.

"You are not a means to an end. You are Meran, adopted son of Onesius, master of the darkside, my teacher, my friend. I refuse to let this sit between us. I have been awful to you, and I am sorry." I say, bowing my head until my forehead nearly touched the ground. 

Meran stood from his bed and made his way to me, and he knelt down and lifted my head gently with his hand. 

"I forgive you Arum, you are not an awful person, you are human, one who is hurting, and lashing out because of it." Meran says, and when he notices my confused expression, he elaborates. 

"You have a strong force signature, and I could hear your thoughts when you were still a mile away." 

"Oh, shit. I can't hide anything from you can I?" 

"Nope." 

well fuck.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arum makes a breakthrough in his training, beginning to be able to use the force at will. Meran and Arum convince Onesius to use Sith Alchemy on his blades, with wondrous effects. 
> 
> As Meran and Arum grow closer, and Arum progresses in his training, the rift between him and the other masters under Onesius grows wider.
> 
> Meanwhile, in the known galaxy, the Jedi begin to feel the disturbance in the force that is Arum.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be a larger time skip in this chapter, about a year. Don't be mad lmao

"A disturbance in the force, I feel." The green grand master of the Jedi order said to the assembled Jedi Council. 

"What is it, Master Yoda?" Mace Windu says from beside me, his face creasing with concern. I studied the Masters around me, jealous I was not among them, not truly. I had earned my place a thousand times over, but they only allowed me to sit among them on the behest of Chancellor Palpatine. I was Anakin Skywalker, hero of The Clone Wars, most powerful Jedi to ever live. I felt bitterness rise up inside me, quickly turning to anger. I had to stamp these feelings down. I was a Jedi, and these thoughts could only lead to the dark side.

"New presence in the force, there is." Yoda says, stroking his chin with his three fingered hand, concern written all over his face. "Far away, I sense it to be, but dangerous, it is." The little green master continued. 

"Could this be the Sith Lord we have been searching for?" Obi-Wan asked the council, some murmuring agreement. Mace Windu, however, looked as if he disagreed. 

"I do not know, but I do not believe so. From what we know about this Sith Lord, he is able to cloak his presence in the force, why would he uncloak now?" Mace asked the council, but more specifically Yoda. I couldn't help but agree with Master Mace, despite my general dislike of him. 

"Powerful, this force is, but raw, it seems to be." Yoda says thoughtfully, looking every bit his age. "A person, this force must be." Yoda says, sounding absolutely certain of himself. 

"Why can't the rest of us feel him?" I find myself asking out to the council, and to my surprise, most people seemed to be having the same thought. 

"In the unknown regions, I feel this person to be. Sure of that, I am." Yoda replies. The answer makes sense, Yoda was the most in tune with the living force out of all of us, it would make sense that only he could feel this person. 

"The next question then, is what are we going to do about it? Do we find this person?" I ask Yoda directly, knowing that he would have the ultimate say in such a matter. 

"No, no. Dangerous, this person is. Too risky, the mission would be." Yoda says, his voice seeming to shiver with fear. Yoda, the Grand Master of the Jedi Order, was afraid? I only wanted to find this man more, then. 

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You have been progressing amazingly fast, Arum, I would say that you are master material, when this is all said and done." Onesius says to me, beaming with pride. I felt some pride of my own swell in my chest. I had been on this planet for over a year, but I had only recently been training directly under Onesius. it felt good, to be able to say that I was progressing in my use of the force. 

It had taken a long time to get a handle on calling upon the force. At first, I could only use the power when angry, so I trained to be always angry. When that became too detrimental to my friendship with Meran, I had to find a new strategy. The answer was surprisingly simple. I had always thought of the force as a weapon, but once I started to see it more as a tool, progression was easy. 

I was progressing in a lot of ways, but there was one place I was still stuck. The people of this planet, aside from Meran and Onesius, hated me. I could barely walk down the street without being harassed for being an outsider. It made sense, at least to me. My people weren't particularly friendly to those that weren't native to the planet. "Thank you, Master. I hope to make you proud." I reply to Onesius, after the long pause that was my thoughts. He smiled to me, his face creasing with a smile. I knew from previous conversations with him that he thought of me as his own son.

I found that slightly strange given that I have a massive crush on his actual adopted son. Adoption in this planet wasn't really a legal challenge as it was on other planets, you just picked a kid who didn't have a family, and boom, now he did. 

"You already have made me proud, Arum. Have you given any thought to our other lessons?" Onesius asked me. The small smile slid from my face. 

"I have, master. I'm sorry, but I can't let this go. Even if I can never get closure through vengeance, I have to find justice for what the Jedi have done." I reply to the older man, who just smiles sadly in return. 

"I understand, more than you may realize, but as your teacher, I have to be honest. Vengeance is a great motivator for action, but it makes all growth stagnant. You may be powerful enough to end these Jedi, but you cannot grow from the action." Onesius replies, and I find myself nodding in agreement. 

"I hate them, master. I hate them so much it keeps me up at night." I say, my voice overflowing with emotion, mostly sadness, but there was anger there too. "I hope that when the day comes that I see them face to face, the hand that strikes them down isn't in anger, but in justice." 

Onesius smiles brightly at that. "You understand more than you realize, Arum. The dark side feeds off of negative emotions, giving you a boost of strength when enraged or wounded, the early Sith realized this, and it made them powerful. Do you know why every single one of the old Sith failed?" He asks me. I can only shake my head in response. 

"Because hate, anger, pain, they are like the worst of all drugs. The first time you harness it, the power boost is so strong it's addictive. But you never get that rush of power again, not with the same level of anger. This is the Siths fatal flaw. They spiral into more and more rage, more and more pain until they are so consumed by the power that they either loose control or loose themselves." 

That made a surprising amount of sense. "What am I supposed to do, Master?" I ask, almost begging for guidance. Onesius looks so happy that I'm being receptive to his teachings. 

"We call ourselves the Sith, but as I told you when you first came here, it is a slightly misleading name. We use dark side abilities, so many of us are angry or suffering, but there is a difference between us and the Sith of old." Onesius pauses for a moment before continuing. "We embrace more than the Darkness, see the light too. That is why there is healing, there is life. Without the passion of the dark, the serenity of the light would be hollow. Without the Peace of the Light, the power of the Dark would mean nothing." 

I was getting my mind blown. Despite my growth in using the force as a tool, there was still so much I have to learn.

I could sense that today's lesson was over, so I bowed to my master and left the training arena. The sun's were just beginning to set, and I had been training since before dawn. The schedule was rough, but worth it. Over the last year, I had used that schedule to master Forms 3 and 6 of lightsaber combat, and had grown significantly in competency with many different force powers. I was most skilled in the aspects of the force many deemed to complex for me. 

Don't get me wrong, I could do all the basic powers like telekinesis, lightning and mind tricks, but they weren't where my skills were primarily based. I was powerful in force illusions, so much so that I was considered a prodigy, but for some reason I still could not mask my presence in the force. 

My personal favorite, and the ability I was most talented in was Force Fire. It was an incredibly hard skill to even use, much less on the scale I was able to. The technique requires one to have enough small scale control to vibrate molecules in the air so fast they combust. I was the only being on the planet that had the power to use such a technique on a small scale, as most people could only do it to large swaths on land. 

That wasn't to say I was the perfect combatant, however. I still had significant trouble using the force to augment my body, and no amount of meditation seemed to help. The power seemed to come and go at random, sometimes I could outrun a speeder, sometimes I was only as fast as I had trained my body to be. 

Unsurprisingly, that was my main weakness In combat, I was naturally very fast, but years of training your body still barely compares to the force. My sparring sessions with Meran had forced me to change my tactics when I fight, I couldn't match the force in raw physical power, but I could beat it in technique. 

My experience with my form of combat ensured that the only person on this planet to best me in a duel has been Meran, and even he will admit it's because he has spent so much time with me. That got me thinking. My blades are made of durasteel, to avoid breaking, but even durasteel can be cut by a lightsaber. I tried to design a lightsaber that would allow me to use my preferred method of combat, but with the way Kyber Crystals are shaped and formed, a spinning and fixed hilt would put too much pressure on the internal part of the hilt, and it would snap.

I wanted to be able to use my preferred form, for multiple reasons. Firstly, my people were very distant from the rest of the galaxy, the chances of anyone knowing how to counter me was slim. Next, I still wasn't used to a traditional lightsaber, and that unfamiliarity could get me killed.

I needed to find a better option. I was the last Rathronian Warrior the Galaxy will ever see. I refuse to let my traditions be lost by adopting a new weapon. 

If I couldn't make a new weapon, I would make my weapons strong enough to challenge a lightsaber directly. I quickly changed direction from the path I was on, and instead followed a side street away from my training ground, a shortcut to where I Knew Meran would be.

While I was training with Onesius, Meran took the time to lovingly polish and organize the weapons storehouse. The constant comings and goings of young warrior's would usually leave the place in disarray by mid day. 

I walked silently between buildings, avoiding the citizens of the city entirely. It took me a long time, and many embarrassing situations before I learned how to navigate the city well enough to avoid anyone. it wouldn't be so hard if the culture here didn't dictate that streets, buildings and even the whole city do not have a name. Ghasnos wasn't even truly the name of the planet, but sector around it. 

I'm brought out of my musings when I open the door to the storehouse. Meran was exactly where I thought he would be, in the middle of the room polishing a set of ornate armor. 

"Meran, I have a couple of questions for you." I called out into the mostly full room, and Merans lip quirked slightly. 

"What can I help you with?" He asked me, nearly emotionless. Damn he was hot. Never thought I'd be attracted to a man with about as much enthusiasm as a block of wood, but here we are. 

I cleared my throat, and my mind, of those traitorous thoughts. He might hear them.

"My weapons are not suited to fighting directly with light sabers, and you know that a traditional lightsaber won't let me use my preferred combat style. Is there a way I can make my blades stronger? Maybe a different material?" I asked, hoping for a simple answer, but suspecting disappointment.

Meran looked at the ground, deep in thought, for a long moment.


End file.
